(April 15, 2024 – Farmers Branch, TX) Tax day wasn’t the only thing giving that “you’ve lost that enema feeling” to the Spirits (45+) squad. Following a Russian Roulette style of rain outs and days that games couldn’t be played due to wet fields, the team finally got its opportunity and it started against last year’s undefeated champion, the Dallas Cardinals.
Whether it be Cardinals red or Redbirds red, the Spirits always seem to have an uphill battle when it comes to the organization. Friendly foes, the Cardinals always seemingly hold an advantage over the ghosts but today turned out to be a pitcher’s duel. Mike Sopocy squared off for the Spirits against former Thunderbird and veteran pitcher, Bodie Wilson for the Cardinals. Although the game was lackluster and only took about 90 minutes to get through, both teams and pitchers played solid, with the Cardinals eventually walking away with a 2 to 1 victory.
Both teams were only able to manage 6 hits each on the night, with an unearned run once again proving to be the difference in a Spirits loss against a win opportunity. The 3 fielding errors by the ghosts proved to be fatal as the Cardinals took advantage of the scenario to obtain the 1-run victory.
Sopocy was great, going the distance by tossing 6 innings and allowing one earned while walking none, and striking out 6. Wilson was also brilliant, going for 7 innings while allowing 0 earned and walking and striking out one.
Ryan Marsland led the Spirits with 2 hits, walked once, and knocked in the team’s lone RBI. He also stole a base to cap off the box score. Stacy Scott finished 2-for-2, adding the team’s only run.
“It’s better than losing by 10 or more, which is something we’ve been consistently doing against them as of recent,” team skipper, Shawn Lee mentioned afterwards. We had a few opportunities. We stranded 6 runners, so at any point we could have gotten over the hump. Credit Wilson for doing a great job pitching, and for the most part, they don’t mess up in the field like we do. I always tell the guys, we have to play perfect or close to perfect if we want to beat good teams. But a solid effort overall. It felt good to be in the game and it was nice to finally start this rain-plagued NTABL season.”
The Spirits return to action next Monday night when they’ll face off against these same Cardinals following another rained out date previously scheduled against the Hurricanes. First pitch is at 8:45PM at Rick Oden Park in Garland. Fans can click here for schedule details.
Central Roofing and Restoration Players of the Game
Mike Sopocy (6 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 0 BB, 6 K)
Ryan Marsland (2-2, BB, RBI, SB)
Stacy Scott (2-2, R)